#manzanec

[dvoeverie-stitches]

A Round Up of Spring Baking Recipes

(My Devotional Spring Runs from St. Brigid’s Day to May Eve)

Irish bannock for St. Brigid’s Day

Buchty for St. Blaise’s Day

Koláče for Valentine’s Day

Bábovka for my birthday

Bird buns for St. Matthew’s Day

Koblihy for Fat Thursday

Preclík (Pretzels)for Fox Sunday

Perník for St. Josef’s Day

Spring Manzanec

Braided Easter Bread

[dvoeverie-stitches]

Ironed the Easter altar cloth today. Explanation of motifs here .

[dvoeverie-stitches]

My First Manzanec of the Season

Since I drown Morana early this year, that also meant baking an early manzanec to celebrate her rebirth and the arrival of early spring.

Mazanec or Easter loaf is a loaf baked usually at Easter from sweet yeast dough, which is also used for Christmas Eve bread, and is one of the oldest types of Czech ceremonial pastries. Mazanec was traditionally baked on Holy Saturday. Depending on who the mazanec was originally intended for, its composition varied. For servants, mazanec was made from ordinary yeast dough, while for visitors the dough was enriched with raisins and almonds.

The thicker dough is yellowish in color and often contains baked raisins or pieces of candied fruit. Before baking, a cross is made on the top with a sharp object or the entire cross is cut. The top may be sprinkled with sliced ​​almonds. The actual recipe for the spread varies depending on the recipe used.

A cake made of slices of dried bread, which was then soaked in wine and filled with poppy seed or almond paste, was once called a "mazanec".

Mazanec could also be baked at other times of the year for other occasions, and coins could be baked into it.

The thicker dough is yellowish in color and often contains baked raisins or pieces of candied fruit. Before baking, a cross is made on the top with a sharp object or the entire cross is cut. The top may be sprinkled with sliced ​​almonds. The actual recipe for the spread varies depending on the recipe used.

A cake made of slices of dried bread, which was then soaked in wine and filled with poppy seed or almond paste, was once called a "mazanec".

Mazanec could also be baked at other times of the year for other occasions, and coins could be baked into it.

Source

The last three photos are from previous years. A couple show White Sunday rituals. The Sunday after Easter Sunday was once a spring time version of Dušičky, a time for ancestor veneration.

I’m sure this won’t be the last manzanec of the season, if I don’t make one for the equinox since I made this one, I will almost certainly make one for Easter and/or White Sunday.

[dvoeverie-stitches]

French Toast inspired by Manzanec and Vánočka

I love the combination of vanilla and lemon that is found in Czech Easter and Christmas bread. At the holidays I like to use leftovers to make French toast. I adapted my everyday French toast recipe to reflect the flavors.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup milk

1 egg

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp lemon extract

6 slices Pepperidge farm brioche (this is just the brand I use so I know that this is the perfect number of slices for the recipe)

Vegetable oil or spray

Cinnamon sugar

Directions:

Combine first four ingredients.

Dip slices of bread in egg mixture and fry on both sides in small amount of oil. Sprinkle one side with cinnamon sugar

Serve with butter and maple syrup

We like it with bacon